Tag Archives: Hampton Court Palace

This was my first ever visit to Henry’s Hampton Court Palace and I was taken back by firstly the sheer scale of the place – 7 acres of roof tiling! Then the magnificent architecture and masonry and finally the beauty of the interiors, especially the Great Hall – wow!

We were fortunate enough that the rain held off which meant we could fully enjoy actors playing Henry VIII and his wife Anne Boleyn, addressing visitors in the courtyard and generally causing havoc! I even got the chance to have a quick snap with one of the gate keeper guards who addressed me as “mi lady”!

The Great Hall was simply breathtaking and of course that was its role, to impress and wow guests who arrived at the palace and knew that King Henry meant business! The tapestries on the wall were made from the finest silks and luxury materials which depicted the King as an important religious figure as he’d formed his own church.

Everything was decorated to the extreme from walls painted head to toe, lavish beds and huge great hallways, Henry VIII kitted out his palace in style! Hampton court is designed around the enfilade style which was used to establish people’s social status. The corridors are long and run the length of the building, numerous doors split the corridor to make rooms and the more doors a person gained access to, the more important they were. The aim was to get to the Cabinet at the end of the building.

Below is the great fire the cooking staff used to roast animals. The picture to the right is the ceiling in one of the main halls which has a huge chandelier suspended from the roof. My neck started to ache from staring up for so long, it was fascinating.

The room below was another of my favorite in the palace because of the gold ceiling and the powerful paintings which stretched the whole width of the room. This room I believe was a place of worship and reflection and had a compact secret door in the left corner which was very intriguing! Hampton Court Palace is a must for everyone and this wont be my last visit, I intend to return with a picnic basket in one hand and a fork in the other!